Editing Jodrell Bank Observatory (section)

{{Short description|Astronomical observatory in Cheshire, England}}
{{Redirect|Transit Telescope|the type of telescope|Transit telescope}}
{{use British English|date=May 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Infobox observatory
| embedded = {{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site | child=yes
  | WHS           = Jodrell Bank Observatory
  | image         = 
  | image_upright = 19.5
  | caption       = The [[Lovell Telescope]]
  | location      =
  | criteria      = {{UNESCO WHS type|(i), (ii), (iv), (vi)}}(i), (ii), (iv), (vi)
  | ID            = 1594 
  | year          = 2019
  | area          = {{convert|17.38|ha|acre|abbr=on}}
  | buffer_zone   = {{convert|18569.22|ha|acre|abbr=on}}
  | locmapin      = 
  | map_caption   = 
  }}
}}

'''Jodrell Bank Observatory''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|dʒ|ɒ|d|r|əl}} {{respell|JOD|rəl}}) in [[Cheshire]], England hosts a number of [[radio telescope]]s as part of the [[Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics]] at the [[University of Manchester]]. The [[observatory]] was established in 1945 by [[Bernard Lovell]], a radio astronomer at the university, to investigate [[cosmic ray]]s after his work on [[radar]] in the [[Second World War]]. It has since played an important role in the research of [[meteoroid]]s, [[quasar]]s, [[pulsar]]s, [[astrophysical maser|masers]], and [[gravitational lens]]es, and was heavily involved with the tracking of [[space probe]]s at the start of the [[Space Age]].

The main telescope at the observatory is the [[Lovell Telescope]]. Its diameter of {{convert|250|ft|m|abbr=on}} makes it the third largest steerable radio telescope in the world. There are three other active telescopes at the observatory; the [[Mark II (radio telescope)|Mark II]] and {{convert|42|ft|m|abbr=on}} and 7&nbsp;m diameter radio telescopes. Jodrell Bank Observatory is the base of the [[MERLIN|Multi-Element Radio Linked Interferometer Network]] (MERLIN), a National Facility run by the University of Manchester on behalf of the [[Science and Technology Facilities Council]].

The Jodrell Bank Visitor Centre and an arboretum are in [[Lower Withington]], and the Lovell Telescope and the observatory near [[Goostrey]] and [[Holmes Chapel]]. The observatory is reached from the [[A535 road|A535]]. The [[Crewe to Manchester Line]] passes by the site, and [[Goostrey railway station|Goostrey station]] is a short distance away. In 2019, the observatory became a [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/2005/|title=Six cultural sites added to UNESCO's World Heritage List|website=UNESCO|date=7 July 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-48893080 |title=Jodrell Bank gains Unesco World Heritage status |work=BBC News |date=7 July 2019 |access-date=7 July 2019}}</ref>